PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale Announced

We got a firsthand look at the PS3's answer to Super Smash Bros.

It’s been rumored since last year that a multiplayer fighting game was in development for the Playstation 3 that would feature various PlayStation game mascots. Well, Sony fans, speculate no more, the next destroyer of your free-time has been confirmed.

Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale is coming to the PS3.

Developed by SuperBot Entertainment with Sony Santa Monica Studios, PASBR will be a four player brawler featuring some of the most famous Playstation and PSN characters. Think Sony's version of Super Smash Bros.

The following characters have been confirmed as playable:

Sly Cooper (Sly Cooper)

PaRappa the Rapper (PaRappa the Rapper)

Mael Radec (Killzone)

Sweet Tooth (Twisted Metal)

Kratos (God of War)

Fat Princess (Fat Princess)

Each character has their own fighting style and attacks; the square, triangle and circle buttons have been designated for attacks, with the right analog stick performing a variety of throws. Pressing the d-pad or left analog stick up, down, left, or right while using the attack or throw functions performs a variety of moves. As players battle each other, each character slowly builds up a “Super Meter”, which allows for one of three “Super Attacks”. Once a level one attack is obtained, you can either use that attack or continue to build your meter to perform a level two or level three super attack. Level three super attacks activate special animations and have the highest likelihood of racking up kills. PaRappa’s level three attack, for instance, has him holding a small concert, drawing the opponents to the stage before pyrotechnics explode sending all of PaRappa’s opponents flying.

Also confirmed were the following stages:

Hades (God of War)

Metropolis (Ratchet & Clank)

Sandover Village (Jak & Daxter)

Dreamscape (LittleBigPlanet)

Stages have their own level of danger and interactivity and each will combine worlds to provide an experience unique to Playstation. Backgrounds on each stage are a ton of fun to watch, especially when the worlds do crossovers. I loved seeing PaRappa, Kratos, Sweet Tooth, and Radec battling it out in the Metropolis stage, then seeing the Hydra from God of War invading the world and snatching up background characters in it’s jaws.

At this point, it is unclear what other characters or stages will be playable, though more details may be unveiled at E3 this June. To tide you over, here are a few screenshots. Click each to embiggen.